The Mysterious Cube
by John Hitchcock
Summary: David Bowman wakes up inside a strange cube, where he must team up with the criminal Snake Plissken and a variety of other characters to get out. Inspired by the movie "Cube" as well as Eddynessofdoom's story "Sci Cube".
1. Bowman and Plissken

David Bowman's eyes slowly opened as he looked around. He was sitting in a strange room, the walls were glowing red, and the room itself seemed to form a cube. He slowly got to his feet and looked around. There were six doors, one on each of the walls, plus one on the ceiling, and one on the floor. Dave turned in surprise as the door right behind him started to open, and out stepped a tough-looking man with long brown hair and stubble. He wore a black tank top and an eye patch over one eye.

"Who are you?" Dave asked.

"The name's Snake Plissken" replied the stranger. Dave did not feel comfortable with this man, but he had a feeling he did not have much choice in the matter. "Dave Bowman," he said in response."Where exactly am I?"

"I don't know," replied Snake. "I just know that some of these rooms are filled with dangerous traps."

"Traps?" Dave asked, nervously.

"Yeah," replied Snake. He walked over toward the bottom door, cranked the handle and opened it. As the door fell, Snake took off one of his boots and through it down. There was a sound as a series of lasers fired, several on each wall, forming a grid across the room. The boot was disintegrated instantly.

Dave was shocked. He looked at Snake, who was starting to remove his other boot. "Well," he said. "At least we know which door we're not going through."

Snake said nothing as he stood up and walked toward another door. He cranked the handle and opened it. He walked through the small crawlspace, Dave following reluctantly behind. Snake opened the door, and threw the boot into the next room. Nothing happened.

Snake sighed. "This one is safe," he said as he jumped down. Dave climbed down the ladder and into the next room. It was much like the previous one, only blue.

"Are all the rooms like this?" Dave asked.

"Yeah," replied Snake as he picked up his boot. He opened another door, and crawled through, tossed the boot in, and again nothing happened. Dave crawled in after him. They went through another door, but this time they saw something inside the next room. It was a large robotic life form.

"What is that?" Dave asked.

The robot turned around. It had a domed head and an eyestalk. In what would be its torso were two limbs, one of which resembled a plunger, the other some kind of weapon. "YOU ARE AN ENEMY OF THE DALEKS!" It shouted, the two lights on its head blinking as it spoke. "EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!"

It aimed its weapon towards the two of them. Snake quickly shut the door as he and Dave crawled back into the previous room. They both took a moment to catch their breath.

"What was that?" Snake asked.

"I have no idea," replied Dave. "Whatever it was I hope there aren't any more of them."


	2. New Friends

As soon as they had caught their breath, Snake started to walk towards another door. Once again, he cranked the handle, opened it, and started to crawl in. As soon as he threw the boot and found nothing happened, Dave quickly followed him inside. Another room brought about the same result, and they made it through a few more.

After the same result happened several times, Snake opened yet another door, and this time found someone inside, a young girl who was lying on the ground. She had long red hair and a leather jacket over a red shirt. As Snake jumped in and walked to another door, Dave climbed down the ladder and walked over towards her. He knelt down beside her and shook her. The girl moaned as she woke.

"Doctor," she said sleepily. "Doctor, what is it?"

Suddenly she opened her eyes and saw where she was. She quickly sat up and looked at Dave. "Who are you?" She asked, speaking with a thin Scottish accent. "Where am I?"

"My name is David Bowman," replied Dave. "As for where we are I know just about as much as you do."

Snake climbed back into the room. "We got a clear room here," he said.

"Who's your friend?" The girl asked.

"Snake Plissken," replied Snake.

She looked at the two of them nervously. "Amy Pond," she finally said. Dave helped her up as Snake led them into the next room. This one was green.

"How did I get in here?" Amy asked as she climbed out of the crawlspace.

"I don't know, but I don't like it," replied Snake.

"Where's the Doctor when you need him?" Amy remarked as she looked around the green room. As Snake walked towards one of the doors, the one above them opened. Dave and Amy looked up to see a large young man with dark hair and a red shirt. He was smiling.

"Hey Ripley," he said excitedly, speaking with a thick Scottish accent. "I think I found a couple of lads down here."

The man quickly climbed through the hatch and worked his way to the floor. He was followed by a woman, who looked somewhere in her mid-30's. She had long dark hair and a simple jumpsuit, suggesting that she worked on a spaceship, much like Dave.

"I guess I'd better introduce myself," said the woman as she reached the bottom. "I'm Ellen Ripley, and this is Mr. Scott."

"You can call me Scotty if you'd like Lad," Scotty said.

"David Bowman," replied Dave. "This is Amy Pond and..."

Dave took a moment to recall the other name. "Snake Plissken," replied Snake as he took out a cigarette and lit it.

"I don't suppose any of you could tell us where we are," Scotty asked.

"No, we can't," replied Amy.

"Well, this here's like no starship I've ever seen," replied Scotty.

"It's definitely not a spaceship," said Dave.

"Perhaps it's a... time... thing," said Amy.

"What do you mean?" Asked Snake.

"Well," Amy continued. "I have a friend called the Doctor who travels around time and space in a blue box. I've seen lots of strange things, but I have never seen anything like us. Also, this might be just me but we all seem to be from different points in time."

"You mean you're not from 1997?" Asked Snake.

"No," replied Amy. "I'm from 2011."

"Is New York still a maximum security prison?" Snake asked curiously.

"New York was never a prison," Amy said, confused.

"Yeah, I don't remember that ever happening either," said Dave.

"Listen," said Ripley. "All this arguing is getting us nowhere. If we want to get out of here, I suggest we start walking."

"She's right," said Snake. "Let's go."

Snake walked over to one of the doors. He opened it and crawled in. He tossed the boot inside, and nothing happened. Dave followed, and one by one the others climbed in as well. As Scotty climbed in, he noticed something strange.

"These numbers," he said. "Why they look like some sort of code."

"What do you mean?" Asked Amy, who was right behind him.

"Well," said Scotty. "The way they're organized there must be some sort of pattern to them. If we can figure it out it could be a means of figuring out how to tell which rooms are trapped."

"There must be an end to this somewhere," Snake said as he climbed into the next room. "I reckon if we were to keep going straight we should reach it eventually."

"I guess that's as good a method as any," Amy replied.


	3. Where Are We?

"I swear there's something about these numbers," Scotty said, as he looked in a crawlspace. "If I could just figure out what they mean..."

Snake jumped into the next room. Suddenly there was a noise. Snake did not stop to find out what it was and quickly climbed out of there. As Scotty looked back he saw a jet of some sort launch a fluid at where he would have been standing.

Snake walked over to the door on his left. He opened it and crawled in. He lit a cigarette and smoked it for a moment. He then threw it into the room. Another laser-grid trap disintegrated it.

As Snake climbed back into the room, Scotty took a look at the numbers on the floor. He walked over to the other door, opened it, and looked at the number for a moment. He closed the door and turned towards the rest of the group.

"I think I might have found something," he said. "These two doors with the traps had prime numbers."

"Yeah," replied Amy. "Big deal. What's that got to do with anything?"

"Well, I'm not one hundred percent certain," Scotty said. "But if this pattern is consistent with the other doors, than perhaps we can figure out which rooms are trapped."

"Good work Scotty," Ripley said. "Now we've been at this for a while, why don't we take a break?"

Snake leaned against the wall as he lit another cigarette. Amy sat in the corner opposite him. After a few minutes of silence, Scotty spoke up.

"You know," he said. "I figure we're going to be in here a while, we might as well get to know each other."

"I'm an astronaut," said Dave. "I was on a ship bound for Jupiter before I woke up here."

"I'm a time traveller," said Amy. "I have a friend called the Doctor who has a blue box that's bigger on the inside which can travel through time and space along with my husband an-"

Tears started to emerge from her face. "Where are you Doctor?" She asked. "You've never let me down before."

Amy started to cry. Ripley sat down next o her and put an arm around her shoulder. "It'll be fine," Ripley said. "We'll get out of this."

Amy nodded, but kept crying anyway. Snake just looked at her coldly as he a lit a cigarette. Dave turned towards Scotty. "You were mentioning those numbers?" He asked.

"Aye," replied Scotty. "Prime numbers indicate traps."

"Well," said Dave. "Let's try it out."

He opened one of the doors and walked through the small crawlspace. As he opened the other door, he got a familiar sight. The strange robotic creature was there.

"YOU ARE AN ENEMY OF THE DALEKS! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!"

Dave quickly shut the door and crawled back as fast as he could. He could hear the door exploding behind him, and as he climbed out a beam shot through the small space, singeing the opposite wall. The group found themselves lying low as it shouted.

"That's a strange trap," said Scotty. "That's not like any of the things we encountered."

"That seemed too out obvious to be a trap," said Dave.

"He's right," said Amy. "That was a dalek."

"A What?" Asked Ripley.

"A dalek," Amy explained. "They're aliens that believe in the need to destroy every other race in the universe. It must have been brought in the same way we were."

"I take it there's no reasoning with it," Dave said. Amy shook her head.

"Well, there's only one way to go then," Ripley said. She crawled over to the bottom door and opened it before jumping down. One by one the rest of the group followed. Once again they each took a moment to catch their breath.

"There's something strange going on," Dave said after a moment.

"What do you mean?" Ripley asked.

"Well," said Dave. "Snake and I already found that room just before we ran into you, but we've been moving away from it unless..."

"What?" Amy asked.

"Unless," Dave continued. "The rooms are moving."

Everyone was silenced. Scotty thought about it for a moment. "That makes a disturbing amount of sense sir," he said. "But I'm not sure how any could build something like this and not get notice-"

"What if it exists outside time," Amy said. Everyone else turned to her. "Snake, you mentioned New York becoming a prison?"

"Yeah," replied Snake. "That was back in 1989."

"Now, does anyone here remember that happening?"

Dave thought about it. "No," he said. "Last I checked New York was still one of the greatest cities in the world."

"Right, and you mentioned travelling to Jupiter. What year was it when you left?" Amy asked.

"Oh, it was... 2001," Dave replied.

"Right," said Amy. "It was 2010 when I started time travelling, and last I checked we hadn't even returned to the Moon letalone reached Jupiter."

"Well," said Scotty. "Before I wound up here I was the chief engineer aboard a starship travelling across the galaxy."

"Right," said Amy. "So either I'm trapped in a cube with a bunch of liars or someone is taking people from different points in space, time, and even different realities."

Scotty thought about it for a moment. "That would ingenious," he said. "Who could have built such a thing?"

"I don't know," said Amy. "Maybe it's some race the likes of which we've never seen before."

"Well," said Dave. "Why would they bring us all here?"

"Maybe it's some form of entertainment," said Ripley. "Perhaps they enjoy watching people try to navigate through this maze and bet on who will make it out."

"I suppose it could be an experiment," said Dave. "Think about who's here. You got me, an experienced scientist with a calm and rational mind, then there's Snake, a convict with experience in getting out of prisons, namely getting around obstacles like the traps we see here."

Snake smiled.

"Ripley, you've helped to keep the team together and you've been a moral center of sorts. Scotty is an engineer who knows mechanical systems inside and out and would notice something like a pattern in numbered plates."

"What about me?" Amy asked.

"Well," said Dave. "You're a time traveller. You've travelled through time and space, and if anyone could figure out that we were in an alternate dimension, it would be you."

"What are you suggesting?" Snake asked.

"Perhaps they're trying to see how we'll work together," said Dave. "They get multiple people with different strengths, the idea being that in order to get out we have to get together and combine our respective skills."

"Or it could just be a fortunate coincidence," replied Snake. "To be totally honest I don't care why we're here, I just want to get out, so let's go."

"Yes, but just wandering around here isn't going to do much good if the rooms are moving," said Dave. "There's got to be some way of finding where we are and where we'll end up."

"I guess those numbers could be co-ordinates," Scotty said. "Perhaps each room is numbered, and the multiple numbers listed simply indicate which rooms that door connects to."

"That would make sense," replied Dave. "I guess it's as good a theory as any."

"Aye, but until we can get an idea of how this thing is laid out it won't do us much good," replied Scotty,

"We'll just have to keep moving," said Ripley. "Sooner or later we'll find some clue pointing us toward the exit, if there is any.


	4. New Arrivals

A few more rooms and still nothing had happened. Scotty's theory had proved correct so far, as they had been able to avoid any trapped rooms, but they were still no closer to getting out. Finally, after some time, they finally stopped to rest.

"How long have we been at this?" Scotty asked as he sat down.

"I don't know," replied Amy as she sat against a wall. "Hours? Maybe a day. I don't know about the rest of you but I'm hungry."

"Aye, and I could do with a good scotch myself," replied Scotty.

Ripley sat in the corner, leaning her head against the wall and her eyes partially closed. "We should get some sleep," she said. "We don't have food but we can at least conserve what strength we have left."

The room fell into a silence for a while. Ripley was woken some time later by the sound of a door opening. She lifted her head off of the wall and looked toward the door across from her. A young woman poked her head in. She had short dark hair and spots down the sides of her face, and what looked like a worn-out uniform of some kind. She smiled and looked back into the adjacent room. "Hey, Romana!" She called out. As the spotted girl climbed in, another woman with long blonde hair emerged from the crawlspace and worked her way down.

"Who are you?" Ripley asked, somewhat sleepily.

The spotted girl turned in surprise. "Ezri Dax," she said nervously.

"Ellen Ripley," Ripley replied.

"My name is Romana," said the blonde girl.

Ripley moaned as she got up. She walked over towards Amy and tapped her on the shoulder. It took a few minutes for her to fully wake up.

"Who are you?" She asked upon seeing Ezri and Romana.

"My name is Romana,"

"Amy Pond," replied Amy as she sat up.

"You wouldn't happen to know where we are, would you?" Ezri asked.

Amy shook her head. "If only I could find the Doctor in here," she said. "He'd figure out where we were and how to escape."

This caught Romana's attention. "You know the Doctor?" She asked.

Amy nodded.

"He certainly would," replied Romana with a smile. "Knowing him he'd have something in his pockets that could get us all out."

"Maybe he's in here somewhere," said Amy. "Maybe my husband's in here too."

Ezri's attention seemed to be turned towards Scotty. She quietly walked towards the wall against which he was sitting and sat down next to him. She lightly shook him for a moment before he woke.

"Ah," Scotty muttered as he opened his eyes. He was about to say something else but cut himself off upon seeing Ezri.

"Oh," he said. "It's nice to wake up to a beautiful face like yours."

Ezri smiled. "Are you with Starfleet?" She asked.

"Of course," replied Scotty. "I was only the chief engineer aboard the starship enterprise."

"Montgomery Scott," Ezri said.

Scotty smiled. "That's me," he said. "You got a name?"

"Ezri Dax."

Scotty smiled. "Now I don't mean to pry," he said. "But may I ask why you have all those spots on your face?"

"It's normal for my species," replied Ezri. "I'm a Trill."

"Trill?" Scotty asked. "I can't say I've heard of them."

"No you wouldn't," replied Ezri. "In your timeline we haven't joined the federation yet."

"Wait," Ripley said. "You mean you're not human?"

"No," replied Ezri. "I'm a Trill."

"I'm sorry, "said Ripley. "The only alien I ever knew was the one that killed all my crewmates."

"What?" Ezri asked.

"It was a derelict ship filled with eggs," Ripley explained. "One of them got aboard our ship, and the alien started killing us all off one by one."

Ezri was somewhat unnerved. "I'm not human either," Romana said, cutting in. "I'm a Timelord."

"You look human," Ripley said.

"No," replied Romana. "You look Timelord."

"Wait a minute," said Amy. "You're a Timelord?"

Romana looked at her for a moment. "Yes," she said.

"That's impossible," replied Amy. "The Doctor was the last of the Timelords."

"As far as I know that's not true," replied Romana.

Snake started to stir at this point. "Will you all shut up?" He said. "The longer we spend arguing over matters like these the longer we're going to be stuck in here."

"He's right," said Ripley.

"I know how to identify the trapped rooms," said Scotty. "It's all a matter of prime numbers."

"Not quite," said Romana. "It's actually the powers of prime numbers."

"It's confusing," Ezri said. "Timelords are just really smart."

Scotty thought about it for a moment. "Of course," he said. "That's brilliant!"

"I'm still not sure of the route," Romana said. "We'll just have to keep moving and maybe we'll run into someone who can help us or we can find clues."

"I'm not sure everyone we'll run into will be friendly," replied Ripley. "Several rooms back we ran into a strange creature. What was called- a dulack... er... delak-"

"A Dalek!" Amy shouted.

"That's it," said Ripley. "A dalek."

"If there are daleks here," said Romana. "We're lucky to have made it this far."

"Still," said Ripley. "It could be possible that other hostile creatures were brought here as well."

"We'll just have to be careful then," said Romana.

Ripley quickly woke Dave as Romana walked over to another door. She looked at the numbers before turning to everyone else. "This one's safe," she said as she climbed in. One by one the group now composed of six other people followed.


End file.
